About Mel
Reading the signals. Connecting the dots. Creating progress.
Mel Arbuthnot is a senior communications leader and executive adviser with more than 25 years of experience across growth, transformation, reputation, regulation and organisational complexity.
Executive adviser and practitioner
Authentic communication for every stakeholder.
Mel balances what an audience needs to hear with what a business wants to say, shaping narratives collaboratively and giving people a genuine stake in where the organisation is headed.
She reads signals early, connects the dots and works across communications, marketing, legal, compliance, sales and HR to align the organisation around the broader business objective. Her work strengthens brand and reputation, builds trusted relationships and translates strategy into clear, credible action.
Mel also identifies, negotiates and activates strategic partnerships, and leads employees, multidisciplinary contractors and specialist partners with clarity and empathy.
The story behind the name
Run Red Girl
People often ask me where the name Run Red Girl came from.
It began in 2009 as my Twitter handle and, at first, it was fairly literal. I was known for my red hair, red lipstick and for always being on the move, usually between work, people and whatever came next.
Over time, the name became shorthand for how I move through both work and life: with curiosity, courage, momentum and purpose, bringing people with me and creating progress that matters. Those same instincts shape my work. I am drawn to the spaces between the obvious, where listening, questioning and a willingness to explore begin to reveal the connections that matter. More often than not, that is where the story is found.
That instinct for finding the thread and helping people make sense of what matters has taken me into very different rooms. It led me to become an authorised marriage celebrant and to create Celebrated By Mel, where the work now spans weddings, milestone celebrations and life celebrations. The context may be entirely different, but the role is strikingly familiar: listening closely, connecting the details, shaping the story and guiding people through moments that carry real weight.
In life celebrations especially, that often means helping families find a path through the first shock of loss, then creating the space to return to the story when they are ready to see the whole life rather than only the grief. Whether I am working with a leadership team or a family, I am often doing the same thing: finding the golden thread, drawing the pieces together and helping people move forward with meaning.
Visit Celebrated By MelStart with a conversation
Where is the business today, and where does it need to go?
Every engagement begins by understanding the objective, the environment and where the greatest value can be created.